Job Creators Network urges Americans to demand Democrats get money to small businesses
Job Creators Network President and CEO Alfredo Ortiz sounds off on the Democrats' delay on 'Fox & Friends.'
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There is "absolutely no reason" why Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., should oppose additional emergency funding to help small businesses shuttered during the coronavirus pandemic, Job Creators Network President and CEO Alfredo Ortiz asserted Thursday.
Appearing on "Fox & Friends" with host Brian Kilmeade, Ortiz said that the Paycheck Protection Program's (PPP) initial funding passed to help small businesses in the more than $2 trillion stimulus package has officially run dry as of last night.
"It is actually officially out of money which means that banks can't even accept applications anymore. Because, once those appropriations are gone -- which again, they are gone as of last night -- they can't even accept applications," he explained.
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Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., accused the Democrats of stonewalling after they blocked additional aid and it seems that congressional Democratic leaders are trying to box out McConnell by negotiating a deal with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and the Trump administration instead to provide over $250 billion in new funding.
"So, $250 billion was asked for last Thursday. And, Brian, just to put things into perspective: every hour that passes, we are losing 33,000 jobs basically per hour," Ortiz remarked. "So, when we see the jobless claims this morning -- and I think it's going to be closer to that seven million number -- that's talking 24 million jobs...from an unemployment standpoint.
"This is ridiculous. There is absolutely no reason why Pelosi or Schumer should be taking these positions," he stated.
"And look," Ortiz continued, "at the end of the day, Schumer has the money to be able to release it [and] has the power to do it. It's shameless, quite frankly, that they haven't done that."
Ortiz also refuted Pelosi's claims that the program was not working for "underbanked" minorities.
"That's just ridiculous. I mean, there were definitely bumps in the program, right? We've got to put this in perspective. Within one week's time -- in fact, less that one week's time --- the treasury put together a brand new $350 billion lending facility for the banks. Were there going to bumps along the way? Yes. But, they weren't targeted to exclude the minority," he told Kilmeade. "That was completely ridiculous.
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"But, the bumps have been solved. The money was flowing. Now the issue is that Schumer is holding it up since last week," he continued.
"So again, those seven million jobs -- roughly -- that we are calculating we're going to see this morning of additional unemployed that's going to push us up to 24 million. All of that is on the shoulders of Schumer at this point," he concluded.
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